Latest Interviews

Chobani's rise in the US - and its problems in the UK - have been well-documented. But what about the yoghurt producer's business in Australia? Dean Best spoke to Peter Meek, the MD of Chobani's Australian arm, to discuss its performance in that market.

The week before Easter saw Aryzta surprise the market with news of its plan to buy 49% of French frozen food retailer Picard. M&A speculation surrounded Mondelez International, which was reported to be considering the sale of its rights to the cream cheese brand Philadelphia. Mondelez had a bad end to the week after being charged with manipulating wheat prices.

Five months ago, Chiquita Brands International announced plans to merge with fellow banana supplier Fyffes. The deal was set to close by the end of the year. However, this week, an unsolicited takeover bid came in for Chiquita, which promptly rejected the offer. However, the suitors have indicated they may not go away easily. Elsewhere, our coverage of Russia's food embargo continued, we looked in-depth at the opportunities for growth in Japan in our latest management briefing and, in a new M&A column, we suggested Raisio sell up to private equity.

The story of the week centred around China's probe into the alleged fixing of infant formula prices in China, an investigation that has taken in the likes of Nestle and Danone. Elsewhere, consumer goods giant PZ Cussons has decided to move further into food with its acquisition of Australian baby food business Rafferty's Garden. And our latest executive interviews included Australian free-from business Freedom Foods Group and UK baker Finsbury Food Group.

Last week saw just-food following China's investigation into the alleged fixing of infant formula prices, which has involved Danone, Nestle and Mead Johnson. We also spoke with a number of company executives about their growth plans including the MD of Australia-based Freedom Foods Group, Rory McLeod, who outlined the company's plans and explained why gluten-free needs to focus more on taste. We also spoke with Finsbury Foods CEO John Duffy about the potential the company sees in bread. Elsewhere, Ocado released its first-half results and FMCG giant PZ Cuzzons struck a surprise deal to buy Australian baby food business Rafferty's Garden.

Latest blogs

Food is a small part of the portfolio at PZ Cussons, the UK-based FMCG group better known for brands including Imperial Leather soap and Charles Worthington shampoo. However, the company is a major olive oil manufacturer in Greece and today (21 July) indicated how it is navigating the country's ailing economy.